the universe was closed
by Titania Eli
Summary: The members of New Directions go through the same problems as every teenager does, and maybe their issues run a little deeper than most people, but when it comes to one thing, they were in full agreement. No one hurts their own, especially not their two sweetest members.
1. Chapter 1

_AKA the one where Mike is claustrophobic and doesn't like being shut in small, closeted spaces. And Brittany is actually quite good in calming people down._

* * *

He supposed that this sort of thing only ever happened to him. If he had been the type of person that would push the blame to someone, he'd have blamed Glee for his current situation.

The hockey team had been the football team's rival for as long as he could remember. Both teams' favourite method of retaliation against each other was throwing slushies at the opponent team. They even made it into a game, and he was pretty sure it was first started by Puck. Whoever hits the most people on the other team wins the game.

This was just about the stupidest and most immature thing Mike has ever heard. He wanted to play no part in it, so he tried to avoid the hockey team whenever he spotted them approaching his way. For the most part, it worked, until he and the other football players joined Glee.

The hockey players seemed more determined than ever in targeting the football team members in Glee, which meant that Puck, Finn, Sam and he were the unlucky bastards that had to endure the full brunt of their rival team's bullying, which would be fine if it's just being slushied (he eventually learned to bring an extra set of clothes to school).

At first, his decision to stay out of the conflict worked, until the hockey team realized that he's also the least likely to strike back. They decided to step up their game.

This led back to his current situation. It was just after Physics class when he was ambushed by the hockey team. Unfortunately, or fortunately – if he thought about it much later, Brittany had been with him on their way to Math when it happened. He barely had time to push her out of the way before slushies from every direction splattered over him, coating his hair and clothes a thick, gooey bright red. The shock of cold stunned him long enough for the hockey team to drag him away from the busy hallway.

"Hey, let go of Mike!" Brittany shouted indignantly, running after them. She latched onto the jersey of a hockey player, trying to stop him from moving.

"Let go!" he snarled, attempting to shake her off. "Let go of my shirt, you dumb whore!"

"Don't call her that!" Mike snapped out of his daze instantly. He caught a glimpse of Brittany's hurt expression before he was shoved backwards. He hit a mop bucket cart on his way down, slamming into a shelf full of toiletries. A detergent wobbled precariously before losing the fight to gravity, toppling over and grazed the side of his head as it fall to the floor.

"So the Asian Goth wasn't enough for you, huh. You have to go after the school slut too? Can't say I blame you, Chang." The boy standing at the head sneered, eyeing Brittany with an expression that Mike couldn't exactly identified but wanted to punch off his face.

"Brittany is not a slut, Hooper." He said acidly. "She definitely has more class than you. You think nobody knows about your weekend romps with those girls in the backstreets of Lima Heights Adjacent?" Okay, so maybe only a selected few knew about that, but that's because Santana knew everything that goes on in her neighbourhood. "At least she doesn't sleep with people that could give her STD."

"You better shut your mouth right now," Hooper growled.

Mike resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Or what? You think you're going to get away with this?"

"I _know_ I am." Hooper spat. "Have fun being locked up, Chang. Have your whore join you. Hopefully someone will find you both before you starve!"

He nodded at his team as he stepped back. Two of the boys grabbed each of Brittany's arms and hurled her into the supply closet. Mike lunged forward to catch her before she could hit the floor.

"I'm sorry, Mike." Brittany mumbled, bottom lip wobbling. The door slammed shut behind her, dousing them in darkness. He felt her jumped at the loud bang, and she slid out of his hold.

"No, I'm the one who should be apologizing. They were targeting me, not you." He frowned, sitting up. His shoulder blade throbbed from where it had rammed into the shelf. "I got you into the mess. If you hadn't been with me, you wouldn't be stuck here with me."

"The more the merrier, right?" Brittany laughed, still endearingly positive despite their predicament.

He got up slowly, wiping the slushie off his face with the back of his hand. He tried to open the door, but the knob was jammed. He was expecting that, but what he was not prepared for was the ruckus going on outside. He could hear Hooper yelling at someone, the screech of metal being dragged across the floor before something heavy crashed against the door. He took a wary step backwards, eyeing the door as if it was going to explode backwards and kill him with flying splinters. When everything remained silent after that, he threw his entire body weight against the door. It didn't budge.

"Shit," he sighed in frustration. He ignored the hitch in his breathing as footsteps faded away and the outside went quiet. "Those assholes have blocked the way with something."

"We will be fine, Mike." Brittany said from somewhere in the dark, sounding annoyingly cheerful. "Santana will find us."

The slushie was starting to dry and itch on his skin. He rubbed the melting ice out of his hair, shivering as it slid wetly down his chilled skin.

"You don't happen to have your phone with you now, don't you?" he asked wryly, realizing that his bag was left outside when the hockey team had manhandled him into the supply closet.

"Nope," she muttered. "I think I left it in my locker this morning."

He groaned, rubbing his eyes tiredly. "Awesome. Just hope that someone will notice that we're missing and find us soon."

* * *

"Have you seen Mike?" Tina asked worriedly, dropping down heavily onto the chair. She looked around the table, as if Mike was hiding amongst them.

"Lost your boyfriend?" Santana smirked, painted lips wrapped around a straw.

Mercedes raised a brow at her. "I don't see yours either."

Santana frowned and looked beside her, as if she just realized that Brittany was also missing. They had separate classes before lunch, and Brittany was supposed to join them straight after her class. She hadn't dwelled over the blonde's tardiness, until Tina had arrived and started asking about Mike.

"I think I seen him last in Physics." Kurt said thoughtfully. "He left for Math with Brittany after that."

"But neither of them turned up." Puck frowned. They exchanged concerned looks.

Santana was in the middle of sending a text message to Brittany when the school bell rang.

"Maybe they lost track of time in the library." Kurt suggested as they stood up and started clearing the table. "I'll just drop by on my way to class to see if they're there."

"Thanks, Kurt." Tina mumbled, looking distracted. Most girls would start thinking the worst when her boyfriend and his very attractive friend goes missing together, but Tina has learned her lesson the last time she had misunderstood the both of them. Mike only thought of Brittany as his little sister. The only time they had ever done something intimate was a kiss and it was due to a dare in their first year.

She sent out one last text to Mike just as her teacher entered the classroom and she had to put her phone away.

* * *

It was probably only a few minutes, but it felt like_ hours_. The only good thing was that his eyes were starting to adjust to the darkness. He could see Brittany sitting cross-legged opposite him, fidgeting with her hair. She was humming softly in boredom after she have finished the story of how Lord Tubbington ate all her hair clips the night before and she had to start using rubber bands and it pulled out all her hair and she's going to go bald at the age of seventeen and yeah maybe he sort of stopped listening after that.

Despite not understanding what she was saying half of the time, he preferred if she could continue talking. He might not be listening to _what_ she's saying, but the sound of her voice distracted him. He was starting to feel the strain of being confined in such a small space. Pacing did not help, considering that he could hardly take more than three steps. The dried slushie irritated his skin, and when he rubbed at his arm, crimson flakes broke off and scattered over his jeans. He peeled off his jacket and placed it beside him.

"Britt?" he called out hoarsely. He heard a quiet 'hmm?' from the blonde. "Talk to me?"

"Okay," She giggled. She started talking about the date she had went with Santana last week. He blanked out the moment she started saying something about making out in mall changing rooms. There were just some things that he was better off not knowing when it came to Santana and Brittany. Between the two of them, he couldn't decide who was more shameless.

He closed his eyes and buried his head into his arms, trying to slow his breathing. The darkness and restriction were starting to affect him.

"Mike?" he didn't notice that Brittany had stopped talking and was looking at him in confusion. She didn't know what was going on, but she could tell that he wasn't feeling too well. Normally, Mike would be entertaining her with jokes and stories to pass the time. But he was unusually quiet and it unsettled her.

"Mike?" she repeated, crawling towards him. He jumped when he felt her hand on his shoulder.

"Britt." He whispered. He unfolded from his curled position, standing up abruptly. She watched him moved towards the door, twisting the doorknob urgently. When the door failed to yield to his demands, he groaned loudly.

"Mike, what's wrong?" she asked softly, eyes widening as he flopped down onto the floor. She'd have thought that he had fainted if it wasn't for the shivering.

"Britt," he moaned. "Get me out of here."

He lowered his head, gasping into his cupped hands. He sounded like a dying man deprived of air.

"Mike? Mikey? Calm down. Santana and Tina will get us out here soon." She bit her bottom lip helplessly, wringing her hands in distress.

She knew she had to do something, but she had never faced anything like this before. What was happening to Mike? Was he sick? Was he dying?

"Let me out of here!" he whimpered. "I can't stay in here. Let – let me out!"

Brittany lunged forward and grappled with his flailing arms before he could injure himself. Panicking and not knowing what to do, she threw her arms around him.

"Santana will come. She will definitely come. She and Tina will find us!" she declared in determination, her voice unexpectedly hard. For the first time in her life, she was taking care of someone. Mike was depending on her.

"...Promise?" he asked in a tiny voice.

She loosened her grip and looked down at his pale face. Nodding, she held out her little finger. "Yep, I promise you. I won't let anything happen to you."

He stared at her, residue of fear visible in his huge eyes. His breathing was still a little rough, but he bobbed his head weakly. He reached out to take her hand. She wrapped both of her hands around his clammy and cold hand to massage the chill away.

"Sing something?" he asked quietly, his body trembling slightly in her embrace.

"Yeah, sure." She grinned. "Just close your eyes and focus on my voice."

He nodded, exhaling slowly and shut his eyes. "Okay."

She racked her brain for a song to cheer Mike up. Something upbeat to lift his spirits. Britney Spears always worked for her whenever she's upset.

She started tapping the beat of I'm a Slave 4 U against his wrist. _"All you people look at me like I'm a little girl. Well, did you ever think it'd be okay for me to step into this world?"_


	2. Chapter 2

Mike and Brittany were finally found when the janitor had called in the help of the basketball team to move the locker obstructing the supply closet's way hours later. The two teenagers were leaning against each other in the cramped room, curled up and sharing a jacket to keep warm.

The two dancers were quickly brought to the infirmary and bundled up. Mike was still reeling from his recent panic attack, trying to reorganize his thoughts and calmed his nerves by concentrating on the lively timbre of Brittany's voice.

He was in the middle of reacquainting himself with reality when New Directions suddenly barged in.

"Who do I need to kill?" Puck demanded, striding over to the two of them. He studied the two intensely, as if searching for bruises.

"Mike!" Tina gasped, running to her boyfriend's side. Her cheeks were flushed and she was panting slightly, her forehead sheening with sweat. He hugged her back, breathing in her lilac perfume. Miraculously, it worked to calm him down faster than his own methods.

"Britt baby, what the hell happened?" Santana demanded.

"The hockey players slushied us but Mike protected me so I wasn't hurt. Then they tossed us into the supply closet and locked us in there." The blonde explained dutifully.

"How long were you guys in there?" Kurt asked angrily. He slinked into the room with Blaine by his side. The both of them were also sweating slightly. Mike wondered what everyone was doing before to make them so knackered.

Brittany frowned, "Um, it was just after Physics, I think."

"That's nearly six hours!" Rachel cried out in an aghast tone.

"Oh, I was fine, just a little bored in there. But Mike started freaking out halfway and it was really, _really_ scary!" Brittany peeked at the Asian couple, lowering the volume of her voice in exaggeration, as if Mike couldn't hear her in the next bed. "He was shaking so hard and he looked really frightened. Santana, I promised him that you and Tina will find us. And I had to sing to him the whole time to keep him calm and happy so my throat is a little sore now."

Tina was looking at him in horror. "You never told me you are claustrophobic!"

"I wasn't." he denied, flushing and shrinking into himself as everyone's eyes turned to him. "I don't even – it never happens before. I was accidentally locked up in a cupboard once when I was a kid, and I guess it sort of reminds me of back then."

"It's nothing to be ashamed of." Rachel said earnestly. "Claustrophobia is an illness, and generally a result of a traumatic experience in an enclosed space. Like you said, you were once locked in a cupboard when you were a child, and being trapped in the supply closest might have triggered a flashback and caused you to start panicking. So don't worry, Mike, loads of people have it. The ones who ought to be ashamed are those hockey players. They have gone too far this time."

"Um," he blinked, overwhelmed by the sudden speech. "Thank you?"

He ducked his head in embarrassment. It was a little unnerving to have everyone paying attention to him, especially when he wasn't dancing or attempting to teach anyone a move.

"Oh, Mike..." Tina pressed a kiss to his forehead tenderly.

Brittany beamed at them, looking really pleased. "I took care of Mike for you, Tina."

"Yes, you did." Santana smiled, reaching out to tuck a blond strand behind her ear. She glanced at Mike, whose complexion looked too pale and wan to be healthy. She could imagine the terror he had felt in that tiny, stuffy closet and felt a surge of anger at the hockey team.

No one was allowed to make either of her Asian Fusion upset. And to think they had dragged in _Brittany_ as well. That was unforgivable. She stood up abruptly, startling everyone.

"Where are you going?" Blaine asked in surprise, dodging to avoid being hit by her arm.

"I'm going to beat the shit out of some assholes." She said with a vicious smile. "No one touches my Britt and dancing ninja and thinks he can get away with it."

"I'm going with you." Tina growled. She could not begin to understand _how_ anyone could hurt her Mike and Brittany. Mike was the kindest, _nicest_ boy she ever known. And Brittany? She was like a kicked puppy. It's almost a sacrilege to make her upset.

The two girls linked arms and stalked out of the infirmary, leaving everyone staring after them in stunned silence in their wake.

"Whoa," Mike squawked, scrambling to follow. His legs refused to obey him, muscles still weak. He nearly face-planted into the floor, if Blaine hadn't caught him. "Tina, don't do anything stupid!"

The others were murmuring in agreement, standing up to follow after the two girls. Every time one of them looked at him or Brittany, their rage soared in potency. He knew that they weren't angry at_ them_, but more to the fact that he and Brittany was a living reminder of what the hockey team had done to their own.

"_Guys_," he implored. But they had stopped listening, incited by the two girls' fury. Half of them had streamed out of the door to follow Santana and Tina, brimming with anger and indignation that there were people _stupid_ enough to actually try to hurt and upset their friends.

"Blaine, stop them!" Mike clutched the shorter boy's arm. Blaine stared at him in hesitation, and then turned to gaze after his boyfriend, who was stomping out of the room with all the ferocity of one whose friends had just been hurt.

"They are going to do something they'll regret." He pleaded.

Blaine grimaced apologetically at him. "Sorry, Mike, you're my best friend, but I doubt I can stop Kurt when he's like this. Do you know everyone has been worried sick and searching for the both of you since class ended? You have to understand how they – _I_ feel when we couldn't find you two for the entire day. Besides, you didn't deserve to go through that at all."

He squeezed Mike's shoulder and dashed after Kurt, but not before making sure he wouldn't fall of course. Mike wanted to roll his eyes at Blaine's chivalry, but settled for groaning in exasperation instead.

"Where are they going?" Brittany exclaimed in bewilderment.

"They are going to find Hooper and his team." He sighed.

Brittany twirled a lock of hair around her finger, frowning. "Are they going to fight?"

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that." He shrugged, attempting to stand again. He was still slightly dizzy, but he could feel his strength returning. "Help me up, Britt. We have to stop them."

* * *

They bumped into Will who had been on his way to the infirmary. After explaining everything to their teacher, the three of them rushed towards the field where the hockey team were having their practice.

It was a nightmare.

He could barely made sense of what was happening, except that everyone was shouting and shrieking and throwing punches at each other. Brittany had fled his side the moment she spotted Santana, sprinting into the fray to rescue the dark-haired Latina. He found Tina struggling with Hooper, cursing and clawing at his face like a spiteful cat.

"Alright, guys, enough!" Will yelled angrily. It would be a miracle if anyone actually listened to him.

Mike tore through the brawl to drag his girlfriend off Hooper. If his hand accidentally slipped and hit the hockey player in the face... well, nobody but him has to know.

When the fighting finally settled, the Glee Club members all looked the worse for wear. The only ones that came out unscathed were Artie, Rachel, Blaine, Quinn and Sam and it was because they were trying to stop the fight instead of joining in.

"What is going on here?!" The worst person ever to find them suddenly appeared behind them.

Sue Sylvester stomped angrily towards Will, poking him in the chest. "Are you leading your students to fights now, William?"

"I was trying to _stop_ them." Will growled at her in irritation.

She eyed the darkening bruise on his chin. "An unlikely tale. Next, you're going to tell me your face punched a kid's fist accidentally."

The two of them started bickering, trading insults and sniping at each other and completely ignoring everyone else.

"Getting into a fight with the hockey team?" Mike sighed, pushing Tina's hair out of her face and combing through them with his fingers. "Really?"

"You know that if we had left it to Figgins to deal with these bastards, they will probably just get away with detention and suspension." She said haughtily. "I'm not going to regret whatever punishment that's going to come my way."

"My heroine," He said dryly, nuzzling her neck.

She giggled, nosing his cheek affectionately. "Come on, let's go. It's late, and I'm _exhausted_. Let's leave Mr Schue to deal with this. I'll handle whatever punishment they throw my way tomorrow."

Before they could leave though, Santana accosted them. Other than a cut on her cheek, not a hair was out of place. She looked like she had just finished Cheerios practice, not walked out of a brawl with barely a scratch.

"Boy Chang, Girl Chang, you two are coming over my place." She commanded, daring them to object. "Just in case these suckers want to take revenge."

"I think they've learned their lesson." Mike noted, a small smile growing on his face.

Santana snorted, flipping her ponytail. She walked off, Brittany clinging to her like a limpet. "Whatever. If you two are not inside my car in five minutes, I'm hunting you down."

Tina watched her sauntered away from them. She laughed and glanced up at him. "We're lucky."

"Yeah, we are." He agreed, entwining his fingers with hers.

The New Directions were crazy, melodramatic and full of issues that could make a sane man screamed in fear. If it wasn't someone cheating with another person, then a couple was breaking up or getting together. Everyone was gossiping or backstabbing or trying to sabotage each other every other day, but when it came to outsiders trying to hurt their own, they were a family.

"Let's go before Santana comes after us and drag us back to her car by our hair." He grinned.

"How terrifying." She murmured into his mouth. "It has been a very eventful day today." He hummed an agreement. "Don't scare me like this again."

"I can't promise that." He said quietly.

"Then I'll just have to collar and leash you, so you'll never get out of my sight again." She shrugged, as if the answer was just this simple.

"I can accept that." He chuckled.


End file.
